OneVillage Partners (OVP) works in Sierra Leone, West Africa, and has developed a new innovative model to catalyze action and assist rural villagers to transform their lives and communities. OVP’s model is based on the belief that to empower thriving, self-reliant communities we must empower communities to meet their own basic needs, train local leaders, and create new opportunities focused on women. OVP does this by mobilizing, supporting, and training communities to reach their own unique vision of an improved standard of living for all.
Having recently completed a new strategic plan, OVP is poised for significant growth in the years ahead. As the first steps towards growth are underway, OVP is expanding their reach from 6 villages to 12, which is an increase from 7,000 to 14,000 people. They are also refining their model for use in other contexts by carefully collecting impact data, establishing new technical partnerships, and streamlining operations for replication. This has led to the adoption of an evaluation plan focused on measuring impact and conducting research to develop programs.
Through its pro bono services, The Improve Group is excited to serve as a thought partner and capacity-building mentor with OVP’s Monitoring, Evaluation, and Communications Manager. Our work together will help develop their evaluation plan, primarily in designing their application of Most Significant Change, an evaluation technique that relies on the villagers’ stories to inform the changes resulting from OVP’s model. We will also assist in developing their knowledge and use of Outcome Harvesting, a method of learning what changes occurred in complex situations where it is unknown what to expect will change. We look forward to learning more about OVP’s innovative model and collaborate with their team as they move towards the next stages of growth.
Our pro bono capacity is currently filled; however, we will be awarding more projects as our time opens up. If you are interested in applying for future pro bono services, click here to apply.